The employee appraisal – is there any point?

We may wonder why so much time is still spent on employee appraisals when there are so many negative experiences. Perhaps you have had some of these thoughts yourself:

• It was a nice coffee break
• Just a box-ticking exercise
• Not very motivating when my manager gives me a low score and I don't understand why?
• My manager wasn't interested in why I'm so unmotivated – time to look for another job
• We didn't talk about what matters in my job
• Really unpleasant – he kept prying into personal matters
• What we agreed on will probably disappear in the pile of paper, and then it's back to square one next year

… And you can surely add something of your own!

Isn't it better to bury the employee appraisal once and for all?

Unfortunately, we would not recommend that. Without talking to people one by one, we cannot realise the great potential that lies in good leadership. A key task in the leadership role is to ensure that everyone is seen and heard and gets a clear assignment that contributes to the whole, so that the organisation reaches its goals. The best tool is 1:1 dialogue between employee and manager. The aim of the conversations must be to build good relationships and trust. If you trust your manager, it becomes easier and less risky to bring challenges and opportunities for improvement to the table. What we know about, we can do something about.

• Read: The employee appraisal: Creating value through dialogue

Couldn't we just handle this with shorter and more frequent conversations?

Short, frequent conversations work well as a supplement to the more in-depth employee appraisals, but not as a replacement. Typically, the short conversations end up being about tasks and operational matters. Then it becomes like what a former colleague of mine wrote to me: in reality, it wasn't a development conversation at all, just a review of what we could do better in the project I'm working on.

• Read: Are we tempted by anonymous surveys – and are they always the best solution?

Good performance and development depend on motivation

Motivation is not the easiest thing to deal with, since it cannot be taught or imposed. We are also motivated by different things, and on top of that, motivation depends on the situation. If Nils joins as a new colleague and makes my life miserable, I no longer find it as easy to go to work. If I get new tasks that push me too far out of my comfort zone, it can lead to stress and burnout, while a suitable push can give me energy and drive. In other words, motivation is important for job satisfaction and is the foundation for performing well and developing.

It is not easy being the manager who has to create the conditions for everyone to be engaged and on their toes when the circumstances are so changeable. That is why it is easy to understand that we as managers feel it is safer and more concrete to spend most of the time in the conversations on tasks and evaluation. The downside is that it easily becomes an unmotivating conversation, and sometimes downright demotivating if the employee feels they didn't get to talk about what matters for thriving and performing well in their job.

Finally, a tip:

Start from how the employee perceives their work situation. Be curious about what matters most and motivates them most. The tasks, support from colleagues, their relationship with you as a manager, being able to decide for themselves, competence development, feedback or mastering their tasks? When you know where the employee stands, it becomes easier to shape your leadership wisely in a way that reconciles the employee's wishes and needs with those of the organisation. The greater the overlap, the greater the chance that a satisfied employee walks out of the employee appraisal.

• Read: Curious dialogue: Simple and good enough in the employee appraisal?